1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a procedure for creating a service profile, dependent on the user""s selection, for a subscription in a telecommunication network. The invention makes it possible to use several optional telephone numbers to utilize or access a telecommunication network subscription, each number being associated with an optional service profile dependent on the user""s selection.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the prior art, call setup in a telecommunications network is usually based on a number selection made by the calling subscriber. In other words, the calling subscriber selects via his/her terminal an address, i.e. the number of the called subscription, on the basis of which the switching and exchange system connects the calling subscriber""s terminal or system to the called subscriber.
Previously, also known is also a terminal-dependent and/or network-dependent xe2x80x9cdual numberingxe2x80x9d solution used in the DCS system (Digital Cellular System). In this case, the DCS telephone has two numbers and the user can select which one of them is to be active. When receiving a call on such a telephone, the user can see which one of the lines is being used. A problem with this solution is that it is dependent on the terminal and/or network, i.e. it can only be utilized by using DCS terminals. Moreover, to implement this solution, changes are required in the mobile communication switching center.
The object of the present invention is to reduce the problems described above and to produce a new procedure for creating a user selectable service profile for a telecommunication network subscription, a procedure that is independent of the telecommunication network and/or terminal.
In the procedure of the invention, a subscription in the telecommunication network is given or assigned several subscriber numbers, i.e. an optional number of subscriber numbers. When different subscriber numbers are, provided for use by a subscriber, the A-ID used in call signaling, i.e. the A-number or the caller""s telephone number that is displayed to the called subscriber at the receiving end, will be different for each call, depending on the calling user""s selection.
Thus, the user of a subscription can selectively decide for each call which subscriber identity, i.e., which available A-ID, is to be sent to the receiver and/or charged. Correspondingly, when calls are made to these different subscriber numbers, the receiving caller""s A-ID will be displayed differently depending on which one of the available subscriber numbers is being called.
For the various available or assigned subscriber numbers of a subscription, i.e. the multiple subscriber identities associated with a particular subscription, different associated service profiles can be created. The services bound to each or a particular one of the optional subscriber identities may include, e.g., a xe2x80x9ccall screeningxe2x80x9d function, different invoicing, so-called permanent-number service, suppression of the calling number, and so on.
The procedure of the invention allows the user to be assigned an optional number of subscriber numbers, each associated with an optional service profile determined or defined by user selection. To make a call via a subscription according to the invention, the user will normally dial either a mere B-number, i.e. the desired receiver number, and/or a given identifier before the B-number. In the latter case, the system automatically changes the A-ID to be sent, in accordance with or dependent on the identifier disclosed or entered by the user. In the incoming direction, the system changes the A-ID by adding before it the same identifier that is used when making an outgoing call using the telephone number concerned. When, the other hand, a call is made to a physical number, the call will be given no special treatment but the number is displayed directly as such.
The present invention provides the advantage that the procedure can be employed without regard to the particular telephone system and/or terminal. It is only required that the terminal have a display for displaying the caller""s number and/or that it permits the entry of above-decadal characters. The network is required to provide signaling support for transmission of the caller""s number. In practice, the A-ID is currently always included or signaled in mobile communications and in wired networks when the subscription is digital. In the near future, a new service accommodating calling-number display will be introduced in the NMT-900 (Nordic Mobile Telephone) network as well.
Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It is to be understood, however, that the drawings are designed solely for purposes of illustration and not as a definition of the limits of the invention, for which reference should be made to the appended claims. It should be further understood that the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale and that, unless otherwise indicated, they are merely intended to conceptually illustrate the structures and procedures described herein.